PARIS (Reuters) - France's top legal authority on Wednesday
upheld a government decision to ban commercial use of the only
genetically modified (GM) crop grown in the country by
rejecting an emergency injunction filed by the pro-GM camp.

France issued decrees banning the use of MON 810 maize
seeds in February after a government-appointed committee said
it unearthed new evidence of damage GM products could inflict
on the environment.

Ecologists and ordinary consumers hailed the ruling, but
seedmakers, including MON 810 creator Monsanto, and maize
farmers lodged an emergency injunction in an attempt to
overturn the ban.

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In a document released on Wednesday, France's State Council
shot down arguments put forward by pro-GM groups, saying they
did not cast doubt on the validity of the government's stance.

"(Those seeking the injunction) have no foundation to
demand the suspension of the decrees banning commercial sowings
of MON 810 maize," wrote the judge overseeing the case.

The State Council still has to issue its verdict on a
separate appeal from the pro-GMO faction, this time questioning
the legal foundation of France's February decrees.

Conclusions for that appeal should come towards the end of
the year, well after the close of France's maize planting
season which kicks off in April, legal sources told Reuters.

Wednesday's State Council ruling confirmed French farmers
will be unable to use maize seeds which incorporate GM
technology, created by biotech giant Monsanto, in 2008.

The European Union has authorized MON 810 throughout the
27-nation bloc but is set to re-evaluate its use later this
year.

In February, France followed through on its decrees by
invoking a legal mechanism, known as the safeguard clause, at
EU level to secure a more long term ban.

To succeed, France will need to provide new, scientific
proof of the risks posed by the GM seed.

While GM crops are common in the United States, France --
Europe's biggest grain producer -- remains highly suspicious of
them, like many other European nations.

Supporters say use of GM crops could help feed the world's
poor. Opponents, which polls say include a majority of French
people, fear they could harm humans and wildlife by triggering
an uncontrolled spread of modified genes.

Highlighting deep divides, even within France, leading
maize growers' association AGPM, which jointly filed the
injunction, expressed hope that future French rulings would
favor use of the GM maize seed.

"We are deeply disappointed but that is the decision and we
acknowledge it," said Luc Esprit, who heads AGPM.

In the meantime, imports of GM maize would continue to
flood into France to feed the country's livestock, Esprit said.

"This doesn't alter the fact that we are confident about
the final judgment which will be made later," he said,
referring to the State Council's decision on the second appeal.

Greenpeace embraced Wednesday's State Council decision.

"Greenpeace rejoices in the fact that the challenges of
protecting our citizens and the environment have been judged
more important than the private interests of a handful of
multinationals and the pro-GMO lobby," it said in a statement.